Abu al-Fawaris Shah Malik, Khwarazmshah

Abu al-Fawaris Shah Malik was an Oghuz ruler, son of Ali al-Jandi, lord of Jand, who held Khwarazm briefly after the Altuntashids. ^{1 3} Shohruxmirzo Ismoilov says his name is relatively new to the history of Khwarazm, and that his dirhams struck as Khwarazmshah in 1041–1043 show that a house of Oghuz Turkic origin bore the title, making five houses in all. ²

• Type 1a: a billon dirham with the profession of God's oneness and the name of the caliph al-Qa'im bi-amr Allah on the obverse, a sword above, and on the reverse "Shah; Muhammad is the Messenger of God ﷺ; Husam al-Dawla wa Nizam al-Milla, Khwarazmshah, Malik". Both known specimens are fragments. ⁴
• Type 2a: a fals with an eagle facing left and "Khwarazm Shah" on the reverse. Its reading is disputed: Sharif Yahya read "this fals was struck at Khwarazm by order of the amir" and gave it to Ali ibn Ma'mun, while A. Atakhodjaev read it as naming Shah Malik; the name does not appear plainly on either face. ⁵
• Types 3a and 3b show a lion; a specimen was found in the Qo'ychilitepa hoard near Samarqand in 1989. ⁵
• Type 4: a fals with a six-pointed star enclosing the name "Kath", usually treated as anonymous; six specimens were found at Sadvar in 1975. The author finds it very close to the Jand coins of his father Ali al-Jandi. ^{5 3}

The author holds that the weapons, star, eagle and lion set his coins apart from his predecessors' and follow Oghuz tradition, and explains the many anonymous Jand coins by the Oghuz's recent entry into the Islamic world and their inexperience in monetary policy; these token-like pieces circulated widely in their trade. ^{1 3}